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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/30050793">you. i want you</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/emeraldsapphic/pseuds/emeraldsapphic'>emeraldsapphic</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Men's Hockey RPF</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Arguing, Cuddling &amp; Snuggling, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Golden Trio, Josh Norris being the best wingman, Love Confessions, M/M, Matthew being a pest, Pining, just mild tho, lukewarm even, sens golden trio</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-03-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-16 02:48:33</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,966</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/30050793</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/emeraldsapphic/pseuds/emeraldsapphic</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>"Brady, stop insisting. I'll be fine tomorrow, I just need to sleep it off and I'll forget about it. New day, new game, right?"</p><p>“I mean it. Say what you want, and I'll do it. Tim?"</p><p>"Anything?"</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Tim Stützle &amp; Brady Tkachuk &amp; Josh Norris, Tim Stützle/Brady Tkachuk</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>73</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>you. i want you</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>i started writing this after the flames sens game this past week so that’s the context!</p><p>i am also posting this at 3am after a really exciting game we somehow won so forgive any mistakes :)</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Hey, what's wrong with you?"</p><p>Josh was confused. It hadn't been the best game - sure - but it had not been quite faulty either.<br/>
The team had won against the Flames, and it would have been a perfect night if only the Sens had not blown their lead on the third period, being forced to claw their way back into winning in shootouts.<br/>
Nonetheless, it had been a good match overall, and, at the end of the night, the only thing that truly mattered was bringing home the win.</p><p>Tim and Josh had both done their good part. Tim with his amazing shot and Josh with an accidental but fortunate enough save.</p><p>Technically, there was nothing to mope for, but Josh still caught him rushing off to his hotel room and hiding in his bed. And, just like that, the American was reminded that Tim was still a teenager.</p><p>"Nothing's wrong with me." </p><p>"Bro, come on, I am not blind. What's bothering you?" Josh replied with the same softness he had heard from his friend. Seeing him like that was pretty heart-wrenching.</p><p>Tim sometimes fell into a melancholic state. It was a habit Josh had picked up almost immediately, meanwhile, Brady had rapidly discarded it as homesickness, not giving it a second more attentive thought.<br/>
Josh, on the other hand, had not been quite as convinced and couldn't find it in himself to let it go, yet.</p><p>The two of them had bonded quite instantly, both over rookie feels and having to deal with Brady's shenanigans. <br/>
Josh truly had a soft spot for Tim and his little friendly smile. They sometimes ended up spending hours and hours talking in the evenings. Forced on the floor by a sleeping Brady who took up the entire couch and whose occasional snores never failed to crack them up.</p><p>"<em>Alles ist okey. Ich will grad einfach nur allein sein.</em>"</p><p><em>Yeah</em>, Josh thought, <em>that's not gonna happen.</em><br/>
It was almost an unwritten rule in hockey: don't let your teammates be if they're upset, even if they ask you with adorable puppy eyes - or, well - at least it should have been.</p><p>"Josh, what's wrong?" </p><p>He almost let out a relieved sigh when he heard Brady's voice peep in from the small opening of the door that he had been keeping all of this time - perhaps in hope of some teammate help. Josh was not quite the best at comforting people, and Tim had not been helping at all, not even telling him why he was upset.</p><p>"He's sulking. He said he's fine, but he wants to be left alone."</p><p>Brady's eyebrows shot up. He made his way into the room and carefully crouched down.</p><p>"Jimmy? What's wrong?" </p><p>Josh smiled to himself as he watched the little brother that was usually Brady suddenly grow up to be the magically mature one.<br/>
If there was someone who could have gotten a guaranteed smile out of Tim, it was Brady.</p><p>As that thought crossed his mind, Josh suddenly felt out of place. And as much as the team - and Matthew - loved making fun of him allegedly 'third-wheeling' the new-formed 'couple', he honestly very rarely felt that way.<br/>
But, at that moment, as he saw Brady crouched down, bringing to the room nothing but concern and care, the curious chatter of his teammates from the hallway magically sounded very appealing. Surely, someone had to inform the team about Tim's condition. They all sounded very concerned.</p><p>"I know you're not sleeping." There was no accusation in Brady's voice, no hint of blame. "I am not as dumb as I look."</p><p>And how could Brady even get mad at him when he looked like the purest being on earth, and when he wanted nothing more than to protect him from the world?</p><p>"Hey, I asked you a question. Respect your elders." Brady reiterated, his voice even more playful. He didn't want to risk Tim misinterpreting his sarcasm - it had happened a few times.<br/>
When he looked like a sleeping puppy any bad move could scare, he wasn't risking anything.</p><p>"Aw, there it is." The little joke finally earned a small smile from Tim, and Brady's heart melted.  "That's better, no?"</p><p>"I'll be okay, really. I just want to sleep now." </p><p>"I know you'll be. Come eat dinner, the guys are ordering, come on."</p><p>"Not hungry."</p><p>"Don't start acting like a baby now. We have a game tomorrow, too, you know?"</p><p>Brady didn't want to make it that scold-sounding. Hearing Tim's muffled voice made him want to ask him to move over and share the bed with him, telling him funny stories and letting him sleep. But Brady knew he had to be the grown-up veteran teammate, even though his heart longed to be something else.</p><p>"Come on, now." He still made sure his words were dripping with just as much honey as the sight of Tim was capable of coating his heart with. </p><p>And his words seemed to work perfectly, as his teammate's head rose from the pillow. </p><p> "Good boy." It came out cheeky and playful, and it brought a red veil over Tim's cheeks, which he was accustomed to seeing at training, and which he absolutely loved.</p><p>Brady reached out to help him out of bed, for whatever reason he wasn't sure of. His six-foot-tall teammate definitely didn't need it, but he offered his hand anyway. Tim took it despite not needing it, and it still lingered in his as they walked through the hallway, making their way towards the hotel's restaurant, where some of their teammates were gathered.</p><p>Brady didn't want to ask him what was wrong again. He just wanted to let him have a quiet night, wanted to help distract him. He didn't have the heart to break the little smile that was slowly making his way back on his lips. </p><p>But he didn't miss that, as the guys mentioned the game, Tim's face dropped again.</p><p>Brady caught Josh giving him a look, probably asking him to intervene in some way. But before he could have spoken, the chatter was interrupted by the team, "So, Jimmy, Brady's attitude is rubbing off on you, huh?"</p><p>"Oh, yeah, you got a penalty. Brady, stop leading rookies astray."</p><p>"Someone actually made me trip." His voice was quiet and defensive, but Brady was listening so attentively, he could have picked up any whisper coming from his lips.</p><p>"We believe you, kid."</p><p>Josh shot another glare at Brady as their teammates returned to their conversations, but he never dared to speak up.</p><p>But, when the chatter began to quiet down, and a few loud yawns declared it was time for bed, Brady did not need a third scowl from Josh to get up and follow Tim towards their rooms.</p><p>"Can we talk?"</p><p>He almost whispered, but his words seemed to echo loudly in the empty corridor. It was not like Brady would have minded someone hearing them, but it somehow felt personal. Like there was an issue between them they had to solve like it was a last <em>we need to talk</em>, one Brady had heard from someone some months before.</p><p>Tim thought about it a few moments, then nodded. "Can we at least go back to my room? I am tired."</p><p>And there they were, back at the start, back at the same spot where the night had started.</p><p>Brady followed him through the door and sat on Tim's bed, while he changed into another t-shirt, facing the wall, as he always did both in changing rooms and at home.</p><p>"It's about Matthew, isn't it?"</p><p>Tim stopped in his tracks and turned his head to the side, not quite reaching Brady's eyes.</p><p>"If you're upset about him, then don't be. He was frustrated and acted like an asshole." Brady chuckled nonchalantly.<br/>
"But we won, you did good, you won us the shootout."</p><p>"That's not the point." His voice was a bit rough, it even almost broke.</p><p>"Then what <em>is</em> the point?" </p><p>Tim sharply threw his sleeping shirt over his head. "It was humiliating." He fully turned around to look at Brady with a slight tone to his voice and his eyebrows furrowed.<br/>
"I am used to being picked on by other guys. I get it, they're more experienced, most are bigger than me. I am a rookie, and I can barely just buy myself a drink."</p><p>"But I didn't expect that from someone I thought of as a friend. And I was probably wrong in thinking that way, or even thinking of <em>your brother</em> as a friend."</p><p>"I am sure it wasn't in any way personal. What happens on the ice stays on the ice, right?"</p><p>"It wasn't during the match, and it didn't involve him in any way. And I was right.” He stepped closer and towered over his sitting friend. “There was no point in that. It was just fucking humiliating, and I am not going to listen to you make excuses for him. Now, <em>excuse me</em>, I want to sleep."</p><p>"Hey, hey!" Brady grabbed his wrist and brought him down to sit next to him. "You're right. I am sorry. I just know how Matthew gets sometimes. I should have said something. I should have told him he was being a bitch. I should have protected you from him like every other big guy."</p><p>He was trying to find Tim's eyes, but they were still unreachable.<br/>
"I just want you to trust me. What can I do to make it up to you?"</p><p>"Brady, stop insisting. I'll be fine tomorrow, I just need to sleep it off and I'll forget about it. New day, new game, right?"</p><p>“I mean it. Say what you want, and I'll do it. Tim?"</p><p>"Anything?"</p><p>Tim finally offered him his gaze, and Brady almost wished he hadn't when he couldn’t focus on anything else but his own face heating up and his fingertips tingling. </p><p>"Stay with me?"</p><p>His chest tightened at the request. He never replied to it, he just kicked off his shoes and laid down next to his teammate.</p><p>Brady had meant it. Whatever Tim wanted, Tim was going to get. Not only when his eyes were puffy, not only when he complained like the teenager he still was, not only when Brady had to make it up to him. He was always going to get whatever he wanted if he could help it. And if the requests were always going to be like that, then Brady knew he would definitely <em>not</em> mind. </p><p>And the thought of how he wouldn't hear the end of it if Josh found them lying together - or if he found out just how happy Brady was fulfilling Tim's desire - forced a chuckle out of him.</p><p>At that, Tim turned his head slightly from the other side of the pillow, Brady followed and softly smiled at him.</p><p>He reached for the light switch, and, when the room was dark, Brady felt even braver.</p><p>"Come here," he said, as his arm made its way around Tim, bringing even more weight on his chest. </p><p>He closed his eyes, trying not to think about people finding them the next morning, or about how their position was giving away his heartbeat speed to Tim, or about what sleeping with the rookie wrapped around him meant for the team.<br/>
He focused on their respective breathing and shifted a bit, getting a better hold of his sleeping companion. And when Tim squeezed him a bit, it surely felt like Brady was already dreaming.</p><p>"<em>Dich. Ich will Dich.</em>"</p><p>Brady was way too tired to ask him what that meant, instead, he just hummed and nodded, nonchalantly answering with "Yeah, I agree." </p><p>And he wondered just what he had agreed to as he heard Tim snicker tiredly, and his heart melted a bit.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>thank you to my lovely and amazing friend sera who helped me with the german &lt;3</p><p>hope you liked it! feedback always helps :)</p><p>find me on tumblr: <a href="https://joshnorriss.tumblr.com/">@joshnorriss</a></p></blockquote></div></div>
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